An A-Z of E-O-C
And so, my views on a range of topics, each beginning with a different letter of the alphabet. Feel free to post your own opinions, whether it's to agree with me or completely condemn me. Some are your usual controversial topics, others are just..random..
A TO Z Part 1
ABORTION: Okay, abortion. A tricky issue, at the best of times, seeing as we're dealing with a life or death situation. And in my opinion, whether abortion is worthwhile or not depends on the circumstances. As I was discussing with Jessi a few days ago, if the child would only suffer due to the environment into which they will be born, then I think it's only right not to put them through it. If the child will only be miserable anyway, due to financial circumstances or the parents' lifestyle, or if the mother's too young etc, then the parents should do what's for the best. However, if the parents are perfectly capable and simply just won't accept the responsibility, then abortion is wrong.
BARACK OBAMA: I heard on the radio this morning that McCain, the Republican candidate for this year's election, appears to be making headway and has more support than the Democrats, whether that's true or not. It would be monumental if Obama were the first African-American president. There is the issue that he could be targeted for assassination attempts, but all American presidents face this..
Obama's got a charisma about him, and a pure popularity that sits well with voters. Looking at his shiny website and checking out his policies, the most important will be his views on Iraq, energy, and most importantly the economy. At the end of the day, if people have money in their wallets then they'll excuse a lot of mistakes the government makes. America is in recession mode at the moment, although the price of oil dropped in the last few days, and it'll be up to whoever enters the White House next to target this issue.
His website is probably not the best place to base my opinions on, ( of course it's going to be prObama ) and not living in America I can't judge him as well, but I do think that America needs a break from Republicans after 8 years of Bushisms.
I believe in Barack Obama.
CHINA: Since it's hosting the Beijing Olympics at the moment, China is under a lot of pressure to change it ways. Its human rights record is terrible, with the issues in Tibet, its treatment of the press and the censorship and past events like the Tiananmen Square protests, etc. But remember, it's not the only country that seems dangerous. Iran, Darfur, India, North Korea-these countries all have serious problems but are hardly going to attract as much attention with the world's focus on Beijing at the moment. Pollution's a problem in China, with outrageous smog, but when it comes to issues like traffic congestion..you can't tell the Chinese they can't use their cars, can you? They see the Western world building up its industry, and they want to join in. They see America and Europe destroying the environment in numerous ways while they try to live in luxury, so you can't blame them for wanting the same.
And of course, it's the Communist Party that are the root of all this-the Chinese can't really disagree.
DIVORCE: An issue which I support whole-heartedly. Of course, marriage is supposed to be ideal, and eternal...secula seculorum.
But this world isn't a Utopia, and people fall out of love. It's ridiculous to think that two people, once married, are chained together forever, with no way out. Marriage shouldn't be done casually, and hey, think twice before divorce, especially if children are involved-but it's useful, and..it happens. It gives people another chance, which is important.
EXEGGUTOR: Pokémon No. 103. Back in the GB Phat days, and on the N64, Exeggutor made a lot of appearances against my teams. At the end of Pokémon Stadium, Exeggutor is used by your "rival", and it's the same in Leaf Green/Fire Red/Blue/Red/Yellow. Exeggutor's one of my favourite Grass Pokémon, and it's also Psychic, which is always a handy bonus. It was especially useful back in the '90s when Psychics were all but unbeatable, before the Dark type was introduced, to balance things. Remember to let your Exeggcute learn all its possible moves before using a Leaf Stone, as otherwise our egg-headed friend won't show his/her true potential.
FACTORISING: Back in the days when I solved problems as well as wrote essays, factorising, a branch of Math that's in Algebra ( here in Ireland at least ), was one of my strengths. You've got your quadratic equations, and the different types of sum like "the difference of two squares", "grouping" and always, always, ALWAYS checking if you could take something out first. The minus B formula, for I forget its more mathematical name, was also possibly the first more complex formula we learnt, although it's nothing compared to the differentiation, induction, integration, binomial formulas. Or a whole lot of Physics, to be precise.
GEOGRAPHY: I have given a name to my pain...
And it is Geography!
Partly due to the fact that my teacher from when I was about 12 to 15 was the ultimate master of boredom and spent most of his time rambling in Forcystus fashion about topics like life, love and cows. He's retired now, and he was a pretty nice guy, but he seemed to be going a little senile in his old age. He was obviously one of those teachers who didn't enjoy every part of the subject they taught, and quickly skimmed over the pages of our textbook which he considered boring, or, as he tried to explain, "unneccessary". Physical geography was his forte, yet all that stuff about industry and enterprise, the different sectors of employment-obviously were a pain for him to teach. He also spent most of his classes shouting at this guy in my class called Timmy Duncliffe. Oh, Timmy, you rogue, you. Timmy was a troublemaker, but he took things too far, pushing teachers until they cracked. Timmy and our Geography teacher, Mr. McEvoy, were arch-enemies, and the eventual result was that Timmy had to be taught by another teacher, as McEvoy refused to put up with his antics any longer.
The last straw was when Timmy looked through the teacher's phone...That invasion of privacy could not go unignored.
But anyhow! Geography, not one of my favourite subjects.
HOMOSEXUALITY: Another topic which is a little controversial, still. Whether you're straight or whether you're gay/lesbian/bi, it doesn't matter a damn as long as you're happy. If anything, having same-sex couples and marriages adds a little variety to our society, don't you think? I have no problem with any combination of genders, and although I'm straight as a T-square, homosexuality is fine by me.
iPODS: I'll admit I struggled with what to use for 'I'. Ink? Invisibility? Ian McKellen? I decided to go with iPods, seeing as I'm extremely fond of my own iPod Nano. Costing €150 last autumn, it was one of the best purchases I've made in recent times, and I carry it everywhere. A few days after I obtained it, I remember feeling a little downhearted, thinking that maybe I didn't need a music player after all. Had I just wasted €150? I had barely bought a CD in my life.
But as time went on, the amount of songs I transferred to the MP3 Player began to increase. 10...20...50...100.. 220...380...450.. *evil laugh*
My love of music has increased thanks to Apple.
JOHN: As in, my friend John, offline. Not John Tucker, John McClane or John Spillane.
There's too much to say about any of my friends for an entry like this, so I'll just tell you about the Mew card. The Mew card, you say? Yes, I reply. When Pokémon the Movie 2000 was released, and all my friends were hyped up on Pika-Pills, my friend John managed to get to the theatre early and secure 20 Mew cards. They were on their last box, it had been a long day, and the cinema staff were feeling generous, and unloaded their remaining supply of cards onto John. He gave some away to his friends, and I was one of the lucky ones who got a Mew card. It's only a piece of shiny card, but for me, it's like a memento of John, something that I'll always have from him. I know he had 20, so losing a few didn't mean much to him, but I'm still grateful. John actually gave me a few Pokémon cards to further my collection, but the Mew card is the one that means the most.
Here it is, for those interested:
http://www.sylvanlaneshoppe.com/ancientMew.jpg
